Burra, South Australia 1915. Belgian Flag Day, Australia Day, ANZAC Day

From the National Collection. Three silent newsreel films highlighting various street parades from Burra, South Australia all held in 1915. These interesting newsreels show the then prosperous and bustling mining town of Burra, or the collection of townships known as The Burra, commemorating and celebrating three significant events in 1915. The first, held on the 10th of May, is Belgian Flag Day held as a fund raiser for the war effort. The second is Australia Day held on July the 30th. This predates the now national celebration held on January 26. At that time there was no nationally recognised national day. The third film from 1915 is the very first ANZAC Day held that year on October 13. That first ANZAC Day or the Patriotic Procession and Carnival as it was also know was more mardi gras and fete, as the title card suggests, than the solemn commemoration it is today. Many of the buildings seen in these films, including the rotunda, still stand today.

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Fantastic looking back into the past